by Daniel Youngblood

SIX-MAN REWIND: District races taking shape with just three weeks remaining before playoffs

With just three weeks remaining in the regular season, playoff races across the area and state are heating up. Excluding those in four-team leagues, which will kick off their district schedules this week, most area six-man teams already have some idea of where they stand in their district hierarchy.

As will be the case every week from now until the start of the playoffs, we had several games last week that played a major role in shaping the postseason picture and a number of standout performances that helped fuel victorious efforts.

It’s time to jump in and look at the biggest of those in this week’s “Six-Man Rewind” column. We hope you enjoy this recap of last week’s action and encourage you to check out our Six-Man/Class 1A Central page for more information on your favorite team(s).

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Briton Rice
by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Tolar QB’s record-setting performance takes the top spot

It’s one thing to put up school-record numbers. It’s an entirely different thing to do it in only one half. 
With his team handing Eastland a 70-12 loss last week, Tolar quarterback Briton Rice put up a performance that the THS faithful may recollect years from now. 
Aside from hitting 11 of 18 passes for 282 yards, he connected on a school-record six TD passes. He also rushed for 17 yards and a seventh score to help the Rattlers improve to 4-3 and 3-1. 
“Briton connected on big plays for six passing touchdowns in the 1st half and a rushing TD on the first drive of the second half,” coach Blake Mouser said. He has 17 TDs to just two interceptions on the year while averaging over 200 yards passing a game.”
And get this: Rice’s entire performance was finished after the first drive of the second half. Beyond that, Mouser began playing his reserves. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 8-2A DII WEEK 8 REPORT: Santo thumps Mart to stay perfect in league play; Hubbard, Crawford win

rioSanto 28, Mart 7 — Colt Bridges ran for 80 yards and a touchdown, and Jaxon Rice ranf or 52 yards and two scores to lift the Wildcats to a three-touchdown win over the Panthers.

Santo (6-1, 3-0), which ran for 273 of its 312 total yards, also got 39 yards and a TD pass from Rylan Griffith to Dillan Branham in stretching a 21-0 halftime lead to 28-0 in the fourth quarter. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 7-2A DI WEEK 8 REPORT: Mason rolls past San Saba; Bangs routs Coleman

Mason 47, San Saba 0 — The Punchers dominated the Armadillos from start to finish, building a 33-0 halftime lead on their way to a thorough victory.

Mason (2-0 in district) followed a 14-point first quarter with 19 points in the second to take control by the break on the way to its seventh straight win to open the season.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 4-2A DI WEEK 8 REPORT: Ballinger pulls away from Ballinger; Sonora, Christoval pick up wins

Ballinger 34, Colorado City 14 — Malachi Bentley ran for 104 yards and two touchdowns, and Wyatt Clemens passed for 190 yards and ran for 30 yards and two TDs to lead the Bearcats to a three-touchdown win over the Wolves.

Ballinger (6-1, 3-0) also got a rushing score from Brody Wilde in rallying from a 14-13 halftime deficit with 20 unanswered points in the second half.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 5-3A DII WEEK 8 REPORT: Comanche, Dublin and Hamilton all pick up convincing wins

Comanche 40, Dublin 0 — Zaden Tello ran for 128 yards and two touchdowns, and Nicholas Anaya ran for 139 yards and a score to lead the Indians to a lopsided win over the Lions.

LaDainian Smith added 70 yards and two scores on the ground for Comanche (3-4, 2-2), which ran for 441 yards while getting 82 yards and a TD passing from Cooper Welch.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 3-3A DII WEEK 8 REPORT: Molina fuels Coahoma past Anthony; Stanton blanks Grape Creek

Coahoma 63, Anthony 0 — Austin Molina caught a 30-yard touchdown pass, ran 56 yards for a TD and had a 61-yard punt return score to fuel the Bulldogs to a blowout win over the Wildcats.

Coahoma (5-2, 2-0) also got two touchdowns passing and another rushing from Austin Joslin, while Aiden Rodriguez added a pair of rushing scores. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 3-3A DI WEEK 8 REPORT: Wall routs San Angelo TLCA; Ingram Moore picks up big win over Llano

Wall 74, San Angelo TLCA 0 — Gunner Garza ran for 92 yards and two touchdowns on just seven carries, and Gunner King went 6 for 7 for 129 yards and three TDs passing to fuel the Hawks to a blowout win over the Eagles.

Caden Sturm, Hagen Surber and Kaden McFarden also had rushing scores for Wall (7-1, 2-0), which got scoring catches from Surber, Slayton Hallmark and Brady Neal.

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by Evan Ren

DISTRICT 13-4A DII WEEK 8 REPORT: Brownwood falls to Robinson, La Vega and Salado win

Waco Robinson 20, Brownwood 14 — Brice McCurdy threw for 270 yards and two scores and rushed for 43 yards and another score to lead Robinson to a tough win over Brownwood. 

Trailing 14-7 heading into the fourth quarter, Robinson (6-1, 2-0) rallied with a pair of late TDs. 

Brownwood (2-5, 0-2) was led by Trent Buffington with 176 yards rushing and two scores. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 4-4A DII WEEK 8 REPORT: Brock blasts Bridgeport; Graham, Burkburnett pick up big wins

Brock 77, Bridgeport 0 — Holt Frazier completed all nine of his pass attempts for 204 yards and three touchdowns, while his teammates combined for 308 yards and seven touchdowns rushing in a runaway win over the Bulls.

Levi Dean (6-109, 2 TDs) and Bryer McDonald (7-98, 3 TDs) led the ground assault for Brock (6-1, 2-0), which also got 112 yards and two touchdowns receiving from Casen Christenson in the victory.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 2-4A DII WEEK 8 REPORT: Seminole pulls away from Big Spring; Snyder shut out by Pecos

Seminole 43, Big Spring 16 — Jacob Gonzales passed for 262 yards and three touchdowns, and Buddha Guerra ran for 140 yards and three scores to lead the Indians to a comfortable win over the Steers.

Guerra also received for 67 yards and a TD to help Seminole (4-3, 2-0) build a 36-2 lead by halftime.

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Jacksboro 2026
by Evan Ren

DISTRICT 4-3A DII WEEK 8 REPORT: Jacksboro, Merkel and Holliday earn wins in Week 8

Jacksboro 38, Breckenridge 6 — Sophomore Ryder Davis rushed for 114 yards and four scores and Hoytt Wesson threw for 230 yards and another TD to lead Jacksboro to a road win in Buckaroo Stadium. 

Cooper Wimberley led Breckenridge with 128 yards passing and one TD.

Jacksboro improved to 6-1 and 2-0; Breckenridge fell to 1-6 and 1-1. 

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Stephenville 2026
by Evan Ren

DISTRICT 12-4A DI WEEK 8 REPORT: Stephenville, Jarrell set to collide after Week 8 wins

Stephenville 55, China Spring 21 — Trot Jordan threw for 390 yards and four scores and Caleb Gleason rushed for 89 yards and two more TDs to lead top-ranked Stephenville (7-0, 2-0) to a lopsided win. 

This sets up a huge game at Jarrell for the district lead next week.

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME REPORT: Palo Duro takes control of District 2-5A DII race with impressive 53-10 win over Wylie

Photos by Carter Pirtle, PressPassSports.com

AMARILLO — Playing Amarillo Palo Duro with the top spot in the District 2-5A Division II standings on the line, the Wylie football team couldn’t keep pace with the Dons, falling 53-10 on Friday at Dick Bivins Stadium.

Trailing just 6-3 at the end of a first quarter that saw them kick a field goal for the game’s first points, the Bulldogs were outscored 35-0 over the middle two quarters  in dropping 4-3 overall and 2-1 in league action.

Palo Duro (7-1, 4-0) stayed perfect in 2-5A DII play with the win, which saw them outgain the Bulldogs 435-106 and score 47 unanswered points from the 4:20 mark of the first quarter to the 2:00 mark of the fourth. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME REPORT: Cooper rallies for wild 41-35 win at Wichita Falls Legacy

WICHITA FALLS — Trailing 35-26 midway through the fourth quarter, the Cooper football team scored a pair of touchdowns in the final five minutes Friday to rally past Wichita Falls Legacy for a thrilling 41-35 win.

Joel Soto hit Matt Balvantin with a 25-yard touchdown pass to pull the Cougars within 35-33 with 4:55 to play, before Tayden Bender capped a nine-play, 94-yard drive with a 5-yard TD run to score game-winning points with just 1:03 remaining on the clock.

Bender’s touchdown run, which gave Cooper its first lead since the 3:02 mark of the first quarter, pushed the Cougars to 5-3 overall and 3-1 in District 2-5A Division I play — bolstering the team’s hopes of hosting a first-round playoff game in the process.

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by Evan Ren

GAME STORY: De Leon dominates Hico 49-7 as Tigers shoot themselves in the paw

DE LEON — Through six games, the Hico Tigers had played relatively clean football, building a 6-0 record against moderate competition as a tough district slate approached. 

Unfortunately for the Tigers, they picked the wrong evening to chart 11 penalties for 110 yards to go with two costly turnovers in a 49-7 loss to powerhouse De Leon. 

Lane Couch rushed for 103 yards and two scores and Hud Price threw for 235 yards and two more TDs to lead De Leon (6-1, 2-0 District 5-2A DI), which led from the 7:50 mark of the first quarter until the final whistle. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Amarillo High defense dominant in 24-14 win over Abilene High

Hosting Amarillo High with a chance to take sole possession of the District 2-5A Division I lead, the Abilene High Eagles lost the battle of the trenches Friday in a 24-14 loss to the Sandies.

That was particularly the case on offense, where the Eagles managed just 33 rushing yards on 30 attempts while quarterback Tristan Beal spent most of his night running for his life from a relentless Amarillo High pass rush.

For the game, the Sandies outgained Abilene High 350-117, building a 24-0 third-quarter lead before the Eagles tried in vain to rally over the game’s final 13 minutes.

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by Brandon McAuliffe

GAME STORY: Bible’s big night propels Bangs to blowout win over Coleman

BANGS — While he didn’t set a career-high for rushing yards, Bangs senior running back Connor Bible still put together a memorable night as the Dragons rolled to a 53-10 win over Coleman in District 7-2A Division I play on Friday night.

Bible ran for 244 yards and five touchdowns and added a 32-yard reception for a score to lead the Dragons, who scored on their first seven possessions of the game — a week after punting seven times in a lopsided loss to Mason.

Bangs coach Colton Buzzard was proud of the way that his team bounced back from the 51-0 loss to the Punchers to start district play.

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by Mike Lee, Special to Big Country Preps

GAME STORY: Hamilton ignores even district theory with 42-7 rout of Clifton

HAMILTON — The book on the District 5-3A Division II football race is that the top six teams are evenly matched. The Hamilton Bulldogs threw the book out the window with a dominating performance during Friday’s 42-7 win over the Clifton Cubs at Kooken Field.

Hamilton dominated on both sides of the ball. Colton DeLaGarza ran for two touchdowns, and Ollie Summers passed for two scores as the Bulldogs’ offense racked up 470 total yards.

Not to be outdone, the Hamilton defense held a Clifton club that came in averaging 32 points per game to seven points and 184 total yards.

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by Zach Duncan, Special to Big Country Preps

BCP GAME OF THE WEEK: Graham makes most of limited chances in 29-7 win over Mineral Wells

Photos by Kael Duncan

MINERAL WELLS — Graham made the most of its limited possessions Friday night in its district matchup against Mineral Wells.

Quarterback Cooper Corley threw three touchdown passes and the Steers took advantage of three Rams turnovers to claim a 29-7 victory in the Big Country Preps Game of the Week.

While a highly anticipated showdown looms against Brock in two weeks, Graham jumped out to a 22-point lead in the first half and coasted in the battle of unbeatens.

Graham improved to 7-0 overall and 2-0 in District 4-4A Division II play, while Mineral Wells (6-1 on the year) fell to 1-1 in league action.

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by Daniel Youngblood

Big Country Preps’ Pick ‘Em Panel (Week 8)

Each week here at Big Country Preps, we’ll post our picks for all of that week’s 11-man games and select six-man games, in addition to the results of our weekly fan polls for each matchup.

Disagree with our picks or the fan poll consensus? Let us know in the comments section below.

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS GAME OF THE WEEK: Graham, Mineral Wells clash in battle of unbeatens (w/ Evan Ren’s Big Country Picks)

LAST WEEK: 54-11, .831
SEASON TOTAL: 351-99, .780

Our Big Country Preps Game of the Week travels to Mineral Wells for the first time since we absorbed the Rams into our coverage area. 

And why not? With unbeaten Graham coming to town to face the 6-0 Rams, this is one of the biggest games to take place at Mineral Wells in a number of years. 

Zach Duncan will be on hand to deliver the game story for BCP in an atmosphere that should be electric. 

Here’s this week’s forecast: 

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by Mike Lee, Special to Big Country Preps

MIKE LEE’S WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Munday’s L.J. Collier marks 8th season as an NFL defensive lineman

Note: If you know of a former Big Country Prep athlete now performing in college or professional sports, contact Mike Lee at michaellee7@att.net.

Munday’s L.J. Collier is continuing his journey from a small town in Texas through a multiyear career in the NFL.

Collier has made his way from growing up in a Big Country town of 1,200 residents to playing Division I college football at TCU to the Arizona Cardinals, where he’s in his eighth NFL season as a backup defensive tackle.

Collier has played in all five Arizona games this season and made a season-high three tackles last week in a 45-21 loss to the Detroit Lions. He has seven tackles for the season and is listed as the No. 2 right defensive tackle on the Cardinals’ depth chart.

The 31-year-old Collier was a first-round draft choice of Seattle in 2019 and played four seasons with the Seahawks. Collier played in 44 games with the Seahawks, including 16 starts in 2020, when he logged 22 tackles, three sacks and two pass breakups.

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by Evan Ren

AREA VOLLEYBALL STATISTICAL LEADERS (Through Oct. 14)

Big Country Preps is publishing area volleyball statistical leaders each Wednesday at 7 p.m. throughout the regular season.

This database will be continually updated for our subscribers throughout the remainder of the season, using only those statistics submitted by area coaches. If your team is missing, please give your coach a friendly reminder to check their email and submit their stats each week by 2 p.m. on Wednesdays. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

GAME STORY: Abilene High volleyball secures Pink Out sweep of rival Cooper in final home match

The Abilene High volleyball team’s final home match of the season couldn’t have gone much better that it did Tuesday, when the Lady Eagles cruised to a 25-12, 25-13, 25-14 sweep of archrival Cooper in front of a packed crowd at Eagle Gym.

Playing its annual Pink Out match to raise money toward the cancer treatment of a pair of local women, AHS (20-17 overall, 3-3 in District 4-5A) seized control early and never relinquished it in clinching a season sweep of the Lady Cougars and securing a playoff berth with two regular-season matches remaining.

Sophomore Brailey Aston paced the Lady Eagles attack with eight kills, followed by freshman Alex Sanders with five, to help the senior group of Mallon Murray, Zia Gravitt, Elizah Willis, Miela Brown, Abigail Weatherby and Kate Breckenridge to a resounding win in their final match at Eagle Gym.

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by Daniel Youngblood

SIX-MAN REWIND: Area schools see mixed results as league play gets underway across Big Country

Week 7 featured a fair number of high profile games, both in and outside of district play. Unfortunately, our area schools came out on the losing end of several of the biggest matchups.

Water Valley dropped its first game of the year to unbeaten Menard, red-hot Newcastle was cooled off by Whiteface and Westbrook lossed a tough matchup to Lamesa Klondike to kick off a brutal district schedule in three of the biggest games on last week’s slate.

Fortunately, there were some triumphs as well — the biggest being Richland Springs’ big district win over Cherokee.

Without further ado, let’s dive into those matchups and more in our weekly “Six-Man Rewind” column. We hope you enjoy this look back at last week’s action, and encourage you to check out our Six-Man/Class 1A Central page for more information on your favorite team(s).

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by Evan Ren

BIG COUNTRY PREPS PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Haskell’s Pinkerton takes the trifecta

After only seven weeks of football this season, Haskell senior quarterback Haegan Pinkerton has put his stamp on our Big Country Preps Player of the Week award for a third time.

Believe me, we’d prefer to share the love. But with Pinkerton’s numbers, the teen has begun to turn this thing into a game of Monopoly, and he’s wearing the top hat. 

Pinkerton, who led the Indians to a 92-48 win over Munday, hit 13 of 14 passes for 264 yards and five touchdowns on Friday. But that’s only the beginning. 

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 8-2A DII WEEK 7 REPORT: Crawford, Mart and Wortham win as Santo takes week off

Crawford 55, Hubbard 0 — The Pirates followed last week’s win over Mart with another key district victory, bringing Hubbard’s two-game district winning streak to an abrupt halt.

Crawford, which now has the inside track for the district No. 2 playoff seed, dominated the game from start to finish in improving to 4-3 overall and 2-1 in district play.

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by Daniel Youngblood

DISTRICT 7-2A DI WEEK 7 REPORT: San Saba, Mason and Coleman open league play with victories

San Saba 22, Johnson City 14 — Jason Everett ran for 159 yards and two touchdowns and Graden Lebow added 94 yards and a score as the Armadillos ran for all 300 of their yards in a big district win over the Eagles.

San Saba (4-2, 1-0), which didn’t attempt a pass in the victory, raced out to a 13-0 first-quarter lead and carried it into halftime, before holding off a Johnson City rally in the second half.

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